The Girl in The Tower

A fresh, imaginative, well paced story with an unusual story line. Our book club loved the fusing of Russian folklore set against a historical background. We thought that the story flowed well and it was beautifully written. The descriptive writing brought the cold Russian forests and 14th century town living to life and even the magical creatures felt very real. Katherine Arden painted a picture with words and her descriptions were very vivid. We also thought the characters were appealing, even the “badies” had a certain charm and were easy to warm to. We thought there were some analogies between the Harry Potter and Rivers of London series; the way fiction and myth or magic work were intertwined which worked so well. The book would appeal to teenagers and adults alike as the main character is a rebellious teenage girl who refuses to follow the path mapped out for 14th Century Russian noble women i.e. to live their adult life in a terem, kept away from their men folk and the excitement of life. This is the second book in a trilogy but this only became evident part way through the book and there was no need to have read the first book to appreciate this book. We are looking forward to reading her next book.

Vasya ( who is now a young woman; older and wiser, moving on from the first novel) chooses a life of adventure, disguising herself as a boy and riding her horse into the woods. She soon gets caught up in lies and deception and she catches the eye of the Grand Prince of Moscow. She must carefully guard the secret of her gender, but as she realizes his kingdom is under threat from mysterious forces only she will be able to stop, she has to jeopardise everything. I enjoyed the characters and their often complex relationships.

Recommended read!

This book is set in mediaeval Russia. Vasya, the heroine of the tale is from a small village where she has been accused of being a witch. This part of the story is told in the Bear and the Nightingale, the first in the trilogy, but this book, the second, works perfectly well as a stand-alone book and I had in fact not read the first one. Left with only two choices – join a convent or marry and become “respectable” – Vasya elects to do neither, determined not to be constrained by the mentality of her peers. She is a feisty, determined girl who knows what she wants and is prepared to go against convention to achieve it. She decides instead to pursue her dreams, run away from the only home she has ever known and explore the world beyond the narrow confines of her village. For reasons of both safety and acceptability she dresses up as a boy and sets off on her travels. And so the adventure begins.

In terms of what I thought of the book, at first I did not think that it was going to be my cup of tea at all. I like my books to be firmly grounded in reality and it seemed as though this one was immersed in fantasy and folklore. However, first impressions can be deceptive and this is not really the way the majority of the book pans out. Folklore is very much intertwined with the book but only insofar as it affects the attitudes of the people who are living at the time, who have been brought up with a history of storytelling passed down through the generations. This means that the book has some wonderful scenes where the characters are doing the equivalent of sitting round a campfire telling age-old stories to each other. It also manifests itself in the prevailing attitudes of the general populace when somebody in their midst behaves in a manner to which they are not accustomed and which they translate as witchcraft, magic and other scary, unacceptable things and outlaw the protagonist as a result. It is true that Vasya herself does have some magical powers and yes, there are talking horses, but, despite my reservations, I found the book both enchanting and captivating. I was also completely gripped by the exciting storyline and the great storytelling. There is suspense, adventure, intrigue and so much more. In terms of the characters, Vasya is wonderful – both plausible and likeable. There are many others and the author shows a talent for making the characters come alive on the written page. There are also many fanciful characters who demonstrate the high level of creativity and imagination which the author obviously possesses.

However, there must be a downside as I only gave it three stars. Unfortunately, for me that downside came at the end which meant that I did not finish the book in nearly as positive a state of mind as I was in when I read the rest of it. I found the end both confusing and unbelievable in the sense that the fantasy and the magic elements were increased by an order of magnitude as it reached the climax and an awful lot of events happened in quick succession which I could neither follow nor understand. This did ruin the book for me in a way as it was just one step too far but would still like to reiterate that the vast majority of the book was great, even for someone with a low threshold when it comes to fantasy!!

This is the second book in a trilogy. Although I had not read the first one, this book flowed seamlessly and worked well as a stand-alone novel. It was in many ways a magical book, both in content and readability. I would strongly recommend it to people who enjoy fantasy, but would exercise a bit more caution in my recommendations for those who are wary of this genre.

This book was read by Macclesfield Library Book Group and we received these books for free from the Reading Agency.

It was a very positive meeting with great feedback – a number of the members have gone on to read the ‘Bear and Nightingale’ since and have very much enjoyed that also! I am very impressed by this reaction as usually the group say they don’t enjoy anything in the ‘fantasy’ genre. Here are some comments from our members:

‘I’m not usually a fan of the fantasy genre but after persisting through the first few chapters I became quite engrossed. A very entrancing tale full of Russian folklore that transports the reader to a different world and time’

‘Once I attuned to the fantasy – for instance the talking horse (!) I enjoyed the book very much’

‘I found this a beautiful book – to my great surprise as I usually avoid fantasy and magic in adult fiction. I am looking forward to reading the first book now. I loved the main feminist character and the close relationship with her horse and magical figures’

‘A genre I am not usually attracted to, but I enjoyed the book. It took me a while to get to grips with the characters but once I began to read to had to read to the end. A story of a brave and determined young woman fighting her way through a very male dominated world.’

‘Very much enjoyed this mix of fairytale, of demons and of spirits. Enjoyed reading about Russian folklore. I enjoyed the pagan beliefs coming up against religious beliefs. Loved the young heroine and wanting the freedoms that males had. Loved how my interest was kept and the twists and turns.’

‘Having read and LOVED ‘The Bear and Nightingale’ (my number 1 book of 2017!) I was really looking forward to getting stuck into the ‘Girl In the Tower’. It did not disappoint! I thoroughly enjoyed the revisiting Vasya and Morozko and the cast of characters. I can only hope there will be a third instalment!’

‘ I loved this book so much – I have bought the Bear and Nightingale!’